


my friend is coming clean, she told me

by zealotarchaeologist



Category: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse), Resident Evil - All Media Types
Genre: Corporate Espionage, F/F, Flirting, Gen, Unresolved Tension, listen i know this is galaxy brained but bear with me, your fave fucks to survive: ada wong
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-15
Updated: 2019-02-15
Packaged: 2019-10-28 20:47:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17794481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zealotarchaeologist/pseuds/zealotarchaeologist
Summary: Ada's never met a mean woman she didn't like.





	my friend is coming clean, she told me

**Author's Note:**

> I noticed during Ada's section of the game these two talk as if they know each other ("you've always been good at running" and so forth) and i was like damn is there past drama there....was it GAY....i want to make it gay....
> 
> re2 ada is very Cool, Competent type of hot but re6 ada is a lot more like, Sleazy type of hot so i like to write her with a little of that.

There’s a new lab tech today.

It’s not something she would be expected to notice—Annette does not notice people except for when they are relevant—but she would not be where she is today if she were not observant. And so she notices. Younger woman, short dark hair, keeps stealing glances at her instead of working. It makes her skin crawl.

She ambushes Cartwright ten minutes after she gets out of the lab.

“Why are you replacing my staff?”

“The guy died, Doctor. There’s not much we can do about that.”

News to her. “Died? How?”

“Gunshot. I know—we looked into it, but our people don’t suspect any foul play. Just a break-in gone wrong.”

 _No foul play_. She’s not an idiot.

“You do know,” she enunciates carefully, “what we’re dealing with here? What our work is?”

“You do your job, Doctor, and I’ll do mine.” She shouldn’t have expected anything better. Their relationship with Umbrella leadership has been strained as of late, to put it politely.

“Reassign her. I don’t like her looking at me.”

 

 

There had been times when Annette would fraternize as necessary, but things had been different since coming to NEST. Everyone here was focused. Everyone in on the same terrible secret. She ate with her team if they had work to discuss, or William if their schedules matched.

So there was no reason for someone to slide into the booth across from her. Especially not some inept corporate mole.

“Doctor Birkin.”

“Correct.”

“Aren’t you going to ask my name?”

The woman is wearing an aggressively red button-down under her coat. Annette briefly thinks of the cliché—poisonous animals have bright colors to warn others. She gathers her things and starts to slide out of the booth.

“Did I do something to offend you?”

Annette doesn’t dignify it with an answer. She makes it out of the cafeteria and halfway down the hall before the woman catches up to her.

“Wait. I’m being annoying, I know, I just…I’ve been a long-time fan of your work on viral evolution. I wanted to say something.”

“Really.” Annette is unimpressed. It’s a flimsy excuse, and she has half a mind to call her on it. But then the woman reaches into her pocket and pulls out a pack of cigarettes.

“You smoke, right? I can share.”

Naked bribery, and not even a very good offer at that. Still, the girl is persistent, if inept.

“Is this place really so bad you’re afraid to be alone with a co-worker? Maybe I shouldn’t have come here, god.”

Annette considers, for a minute, then goes to take the offered smoke. Whatever will get her some peace and fucking quiet.

But the woman holds her hand back, just for a moment. “My name is Ada, since you didn’t ask.”

“Ada. Fine.”

They end up going to the greenhouse—not inside, obviously, it’s not good for the plants. But the view sort of reminds one of being aboveground. Ada asks a lot of questions—about the plants (not telling,) about working for Umbrella (not telling,) about William (definitely not telling.) About the G project, though, she seems to have already gathered a good deal of information.

“What’s so much better about it? We already have plenty of killing machines.”

“Human beings get distracted, lose focus.” Like she has before. Like she is now. “The virus is a pure expression of the drive to survive and reproduce.”

Ada raises an eyebrow at her. “Survive and reproduce. That’s your idea of a perfect organism?”

“Evolutionarily perfect. Perfect for its intended purpose.”

“Sure. But that’s not much of a life.”

“And that’s a very human way of thinking.” It’s not the first time she’s had this conversation. Even back when she was working with _common_ viruses, the morality of evolution kept coming up. The reason she and William are able to work like this is in part a result of their ability to look beyond that.

Ada taps her cigarette over the railing. “You really believe that’s all there is to life? Survival and, ah…” Her eyes dart down, then back up. “…reproduction?”

 _I believe we’re going to make something new. Something better._ “It’s not about what I believe. I’m here to understand.”

Ada looks at her again, and there’s suddenly no teasing in her eyes. But then the moment passes and she’s looking at her watch. “Fuck, I’m supposed to be at the low-temp lab in a few minutes. Thanks for talking with me, Annette.”

“It’s Doctor Birkin. We’re not friends.”

“Doctor Birkin, then. Thank you.” She shakes Annette’s hand before she can pull away. Her skin is very soft.

 

 

Over the next few weeks she notices that Ada is an incorrigible flirt—not just with her, but just about anyone who gets her attention. This provides some context for her suspicious behavior. Maybe she’s just like that. She has more important things to worry about than a glorified intern with a silly crush.

Except.

Papers are misplaced. People get sick. She’s awfully good at showing up in areas she absolutely should not have access to.

People don’t expect her to notice such things. Married to the work, after all, and William is usually the one who takes care of arguing with corporate. But the two of them would not have made it this far without very good survival instincts.

 

 

It’s night on the surface, and Annette is in her office. Easy down here to forget what time it is, to lose track of your circadian rhythms entirely. She was supposed to go home a few hours ago. It’s her weekend off. But Sherry should be in bed right now anyway. It won’t make a difference to her what time at night her mother comes home.

“Working late again, Doctor?”

“They,” she waves her cigarette vaguely in the direction of the specimens, “don’t wait while we sleep. There’s work to do.”

“You’re only human. Even you need to rest.” The woman—Ada—is close behind her now. She doesn’t turn around. “At least let me keep you company? I brought coffee.”

“Leave the coffee. You can go.”

“Ugh, you wound me.”

Ada slides a mug over towards her computer, then goes quiet. For a minute, it seems like she might give up her chase and leave Annette in peace. But then she feels a hand clamp down on her wrist—surprisingly hard, though her skin is still soft—making her drop her cigarette in shock. Ada grabs it before it can go out and steps back around her, so that Annette has to turn her whole body around to face her.

“I’m trying to focus.” She snaps, though Ada seems unfazed. She’s not even looking at her, instead gazing over her shoulder at the unguarded computer screen.

“Maybe that’s your problem.”

Ada makes eye contact with her, finally, and takes a slow drag of her cigarette. Her last until she goes aboveground again. _Bitch._

“You never relax. You don’t sleep, you barely eat. Come on, I’m worried about you.”

She passes the cigarette back, but doesn’t look remorseful. Annette snatches her hand away.

“And you think bothering me is a good way of showing it.” Ada laughs a little at that, and steps closer. She isn’t a particularly tall woman, but she takes up space very effectively. She leans over. A little too close.

“It worked, didn’t it? You’re paying attention to me now.”

The woman’s hand on her thigh. Presumptuous. “You seem awfully tense. Sure you don’t want some help?”

“I’m a married woman.”

Ada shrugs. “So are a lot of people.”

“I have a child.”

“Again, so do a lot of people.” She starts playing with one of the loose threads on Annette’s jeans, and she has the sudden urge to put her cigarette out on this woman’s hand. “Wow, you actually don’t want to fuck me, do you?”

“A lot of people aren’t researchers presiding over a top-secret bioweapon project.”

Ada’s eyes go cold instantly. Her nails dig into Annette’s leg and for the first time in this ridiculous conversation, she actually feels a spark of something hot through her veins. Her mouth goes dry. Before, she had thought the honeypot act pathetic, but she sees now—the bad acting is another layer. This is a predator.

“Interesting. Seems I misjudged you.”

Her breathing is suddenly very heavy. She can feel warmth rising in her face. It’s adrenaline, she knows. Hyperarousal. Standard biological reaction, her body preparing to fight or flee. Neither offer her good odds if this woman wants to kill her. There’s a scalpel on this desk behind her. Maybe, if she can keep her talking.

“So your plan was…what, to seduce me and steal my research?” She lifts her cigarette to her mouth, makes it look like she’s leaning on the desk with her other hand.

Surprisingly, Ada backs off, now that it’s clear she won’t get what she wants. “I’m just here to understand.”

“You know you’ll be killed if you’re caught.” Her mouth turns down into a sneer. “Or worse, we could always use more subjects. Do you _really_ know what the G-virus does? You wouldn’t enjoy it.” It’s nasty of her, sure, but she’s not lying.

Ada—if that is her real name—is backing into the doorway now. “I don’t get caught.” In a moment, she’ll be gone with everything she knows. Unless Annette can keep her here.

Her hand is shaking on the scalpel.

“May I ask why me? Why not my husband?”

The woman in red grins, genuinely this time. “Ruthless women are more my type.” She reaches into her coat, sudden—

Everything goes up in smoke.

 

It wasn’t a real bomb, at least. After evacuation is done, only one person is found missing. Security says they shot her as she was leaving. A confirmed kill. Annette doesn’t believe that for a second. At least it gets Umbrella leadership to start taking the spy problem more seriously.

In the coming days, Annette thinks of her occasionally, thinks of beings who survive. Before everything really goes to hell.


End file.
